Outback Newsletter Website - Information (www.outback.org.uk)

Outback peoduced a monthly Newsletter for
Lesbians, Dykes, Gay and Bi-sexual Women.

Working hand-in-hand with Cornwall Lesbian Line
it was run solely by volunteers.

Cornwall Lesbian Line - A brief Herstory.

CLL started in August of 1989 and is a phone help-line for Women. CLL provides Advice, Guidance, Referrals, Information and Support to Women who are or think they are Lesbians.

CLL also gives advice to Lesbians visiting Cornwall and provides an important "be-friending" service.

If you would like further information about CLL you can contact them via the "Outback" address or phoning the support line on a thursday evening.

This important service has now closed (1989 to 2009)

Outback Newsletter - Background and Herstory.

In 1995 a group of women decided that Cornwall not only needed the dedicated service of CLL, but also another form of getting information to Lesbians in Cornwall.

After several community meetings it was decided to form a local group and produce a "local" Newsletter for women, running in-conjunction with CLL, but offering a community spirited form of contact and information, which would extend to women in rural or isolated areas.

The first issue of Outback was produced in August of 1996 and was launched at the local Cornwall Gay Pride festival that year, and has been an essential part of the Cornish Lesbian community ever since.

Produced on a monthly basis by a very small group of volunteers, who gave up their time and energy for this vital service.

The Newsletters subscription/purchase costs were kept low, to make it accessible to women who were on low incomes, though Outback relied solely on subscriptions and any donations it received.

Over the years Outack grew and diversified and it was obvious with technology and in particular the take off of the internet that a newletter wasn't alone going to be enough. so on the 1st jan 2000 outback launched this website.

The Newsletter no longer functions, but the website and online groups will continue...

Outback Website.

Outback Website was created by a volunteer on the Outback team and 'upped' to the Internet in January 2000 and ran in conjunction with the newsletter.

In 2007 Outback online branched out and started two Newsgroups for those who wanted to participate in an online community via Yahoo and MySpace.

In January 2009 when it was decided the Newsletter would no longer run we decided to set up a new online group using the ever popular facebook!

As of February 2009 Outback Online will no longer provide local information on whats currently happening, but will evolve into a resource and information centre with historical and reference material.

The Outback Newsletter was A5/C5 (booklet) in size and contained anything of interest to Lesbians, not just those living in Cornwall. Each months cover was the next colour in the LGBT 6 col Rainbow.

The Newsletter was not a "fancy" production, and didn't aim to be. The content is aimed for the diverse Lesbian community, whose diverse tastes gave it a friendly and fun feel.

Outback to many women was a "Life-Line" and was designed to give local women, holiday makers, or other lesbian, gay women, queer women, dykes (however identified) information about Cornwall.

Outback contained Articles and Features, News and Reviews, Contacts and Letters, Recipes, Stories, Quiz's and Competitions, What's On and Where to go, Adverts and Information on Local and National Help-lines or Services, as well as contributions from the local community themselves...